Summary 10th WORLD TUNA CONFERENCE

DECLARATION OF THE WORLD TUNA INDUSTRY X WORLD TUNA CONFERENCE “TUNA VIGO 2021”.

The representatives of the world tuna industry gathered in Vigo at the 10th World Tuna Conference, held on 13 and 14 September 2021, make the following statement:

Covid-19 has been a great challenge for the tuna sector which, despite the difficulties it has had to face, has been an example of resilience, demonstrating its responsibility and commitment to the purpose of ensuring the supply to the population of a nutritious food, such as tuna and its products, responding to the great demand of the final consumer. Thus, it was declared from the beginning of the pandemic in most countries of the world as an essential activity.
Covid-19 has caused a global crisis which is not alien to a tuna industry that reinforces its strategic objective of continuing to ensure the supply of a nutritious, safe, sustainable and quality food under the strictest standards of safety and hygiene.

In the current context of pandemic, the concern for health, sustainability and convenience of products has been reinforced, trends in which a tuna industry that is internationalized and that is committed to innovation as a tool that enables its alignment to these drivers of consumption had already been working.
Also, the whole sector agrees on the need to work to enhance the image of tuna and canned tuna, avoiding being categorized as a “commodity” product.

It reinforces the idea that the creation of value and the generation of emotions through appropriate communication is vital to respond to the demands of today’s consumer, who is at the centre of the decisions of the sector as a whole. In this sense, it is essential to have the support of the different Administrations to inform about the properties of these products with the firm purpose of being perceived by the consumer, the distribution and society in general in a healthy and sustainable way.

Tuna and canned tuna play a fundamental role in the food security and sustainable socio-economic development of many families worldwide. It is a global, safe, nutritious and versatile product. Its outstanding nutritional properties recommend including it in a balanced diet. It is also one of the most demanded food products, and is present in most homes. Therefore, the sustainable and responsible management of tuna must continue to be a commitment of the entire value chain of the tuna industry, which has been working for years on sustainability, in order to ensure not only the continuity of the marine ecosystem as a source of stable food supply, but also the future of the sector.
The status of tropical tuna resources is a matter of concern in some oceans and for some species. Therefore, efficient conservation and management measures, based on scientific data and in coordination with all RFMOs, must be ensured by all operators worldwide.
In this area, it is also crucial to continue the global fight against illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing to ensure responsible fishing and trade.

With regard to the EU market, the main market, the implementation of the digitization of catch certificates through the CATCH system should ensure uniformity in the control procedures by the EU Member States, serving as an example for the whole world.

Likewise, private and voluntary initiatives in the field of sustainability are useful tools for market differentiation as long as they do not create barriers to trade.
The tuna canning industry worldwide, and in particular the EU tuna canning industry, needs to have raw material available in order to maintain its competitiveness and its important social dimension.
The current inflationary environment and turbulence in supply and demand are challenging business decisions and their value chains.
It has been confirmed that the sector must commit to technological development and innovation as a key tool to ensure its leadership position in international markets. In a continuous commitment to the optimization of production processes, Industry 4.0 based on the digitization of all links in the value chain, a trend that the Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated and positioned as an opportunity in the market, is the tool of the future to allow through artificial intelligence, machine learning and other data processing tools for intelligent, efficient and sustainable fishing, production and transformation.

The EU market is the main international market for seafood products and also for canned tuna, and there is therefore great competition between the different operators that market their products there, whether from the EU or from third countries.
Therefore, it is essential that the administrations ensure that this competition is carried out on the basis of the so-called “level playing field”, guaranteeing effective control with respect to compliance with regulatory standards in the socio-labour, environmental, quality and food safety fields, among others.
Likewise, the market is immersed in a process of trade liberalization at a global level, a fact that also affects international trade in America, the Middle East, Africa and Asia. This situation provides new market opportunities, as these areas show a positive evolution of consumption and growing industrial development, with drivers and expectations shared by their citizens.

Therefore, the tuna industry gathered at this 10th World Tuna Conference “Vigo 2021” considers it essential that the Trade Agreements establish balanced provisions, with surveillance and control based on compliance with standards in areas related to socio-labour, environmental and food safety aspects, in order to achieve an equitable balance for the benefit of the stock and product categories.
Thus, those present, representing more than 90% of world tuna production, firmly believe in the need to continue working for a sustainable development of the sector, from the economic, social and environmental point of view on equal terms.
Tuna is everyone’s resource, the conviction behind this conference is that the future of the sector is shared with the SDGs as the central axis, which are presented as fundamental strategic lines of recovery and growth, along with the need to reorganize our business models, to promote innovation, to attract disruptive thinking to, in short, win the challenge of the future.

The XI World Tuna Conference “Vigo 2023” starts today and will take place on 11 and 12 September 2023, hoping to see you in person in Vigo.